AltraVue Capital LLC Invests $48.34 Million in VSE Co. (NASDAQ:VSEC)

AltraVue Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of VSE Co. (NASDAQ:VSEC) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 547,608 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,343,000. VSE makes up about 4.8% of AltraVue Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. AltraVue Capital LLC owned approximately 2.97% of VSE at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in VSE in the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new stake in VSE in the 1st quarter worth about $221,000. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in VSE in the 1st quarter worth about $241,000. Archer Investment Corp bought a new stake in VSE in the 2nd quarter worth about $247,000. Finally, Precision Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in VSE in the 1st quarter worth about $280,000. 91.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at VSE

In related news, major shareholder Calvin Scott Koonce sold 15,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.83, for a total transaction of $1,404,999.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 463,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,543,369.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 14.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

VSE Stock Performance

Shares of VSEC stock opened at $88.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 3.53, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $87.54 and its 200 day moving average is $82.82. VSE Co. has a 12 month low of $48.47 and a 12 month high of $94.10.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The construction company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $265.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.60 million. VSE had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 7.87%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that VSE Co. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.

VSE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 6th.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VSEC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of VSE in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of VSE in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of VSE in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of VSE in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of VSE from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.83.

VSE Company Profile

VSE Corporation operates as a diversified aftermarket products and services company in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Aviation and Fleet. The Aviation segment provides aftermarket parts supply and distribution; maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for components and engine accessories supporting commercial, business, and general aviation operators.